Here's the plan: A group of four-wheelers rendezvous on Means Dry Lake Bed near Johnson Valley, California, around 5 p.m. on a Saturday. They chow down on hamburgers and party until the sun goes down. Then, under a full moon, they run the Jackhammer Trail backward. If the night-wheelers finish Jackhammer before dawn, they'll keep running trails until sunrise. After all, Johnson Valley is home to the Outer Limits, Sunbonnet, Aftershock, and Hell's Gate trails. All these trails are within a short drive from the Jackhammer Trail. After sunrise, the group planned to return to base camp by 9 a.m. Sunday for a breakfast prepared by those who remained behind.
The daytime temperatures in the desert leading up to the night run were running between 98 and 105 degrees, dropping into the 40s at night, which meant that every participant needed to bring a jacket and sunblock. The sunblock was just in case the desert night run turned into a day run on Sunday. As with most other trail rides, participants packed plenty of food and water. Even with all the planning, things didn't exactly go the way we thought they would.
Four-wheelers from California and Arizona began arriving at the lake bed early Saturday afternoon. The BBQ grill was fired up and all the condiments were spread out in an enclosed trailer to protect them from the desert wind. Hamburgers and an assortment of salads and desserts were plentiful. After dinner, it was easier to think about a nap than starting an all-night trail ride. However, with one exception, this group was committed to a night run under a full moon.
By the time the sun disappeared beneath the horizon and the full moon had risen over the desert mountains, it was 9 p.m. on Saturday. Our leader, Jason Bunch from Tri-County Gear, gave the command to start the engines, and the group disappeared into the night, leaving most of the women and children behind for a peaceful evening.
There are several places where a GPS is important, and driving around in the desert at night is one of them. The Jackhammer and Sledgehammer trails begin at 34 25' 15" N, 116 28' 19" W and end at 34 25' 22" N, 116 28' 19" W.
After entering the GPS coordinates for the trail and base camp into a handheld Garmin GPS, the vehicles slipped into the night. Lights from the base camp and surrounding communities could only be seen from the tops of the hills, and the Jackhammer trail runs through desert washes most of the time. During the first few hours of the trail ride, it was very dark within the desert canyons. But as the full moon moved higher into the sky, the light improved to the point where flashlights were no longer necessary when walking between the vehicles. That is, unless a set of headlights met your eyes in the darkness. In that case, it took several minutes for your eyes to readjust to the moonlit trail. Each vehicle moved carefully through the wash, backing up when necessary and going easy on the throttle; no one wanted to wrench on a vehicle in the dark. But breakdowns on extreme trails are a common occurrence, and this moonlight run would be no exception.